The Albena Lake Hodge Comprehensive School is continuing to graduate some brilliant students every year, with very good performances in the regional CXC Examinations, and certainly deserves every commendation. It is an institutionthat we can boast about as an example of what it means to be Anguillian, catering to the needs of a large and diverse student population as the Ministry of Education so aptly said in its statementof congratulations. The school is making its mark in the region and, through its achievements in educating our children,it is really giving all of usa measure of pride as a people whose unequivocal passion must be the building and safeguarding of our social and economic institutions thus sustaining the goals of, and preserving the ideals of, our hard-fought revolution.
That is why we must feel saddened if, and when, some of our cherished institutions or projects fail for some reason. We find ourselves still pondering the takeover or rescue of our two indigenous commercial banks by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank supported by the IMF, World Bank, the British and Anguilla Governments and many, if not all, of our citizenry. The stated intention over an initial period of six months is to protect the interests of depositors and creditors; to stabilise and restructure the banks; and to return them to a state of normalcy.
That appears to be perfectly in order. It is especially so given the fact that there were similar takeovers of commercial banks in Antigua and Montserrat by the ECCB and their successful turn around and hand back to the respective islands. There should be no reason to speculate or believe that the takeover in Anguilla will be anything other than the same arrangement as in Antigua and Montserrat whereby CCB and NBA, having been stabilised and restructured, would then be returned to local control and management.
It must be mentioned, in passing, that some persons have expressed fear that consideration could be given to merging the Anguilla banks with another bank in St Kitts-Nevis. This assumption or fear should be dismissed as unfounded rumour.However, that fear, and the ready opposition, must be understood in the context that there are Anguillians with long memories of how the late Premier Bradshaw allegedly froze their bank accounts in St. Kitts as a means of starving them into submission during the 1967 revolution.
But these are different days and it is a far different ball game with experienced and trusted financial experts involved in the rescue mission of Anguilla’s banks. Perhaps the presence of the Premier of Montserrat and the Minister of Finance of Antigua at the pressconferenceannouncing the takeover of the Anguilla banks on Monday, August 12, plus the joint statements by the Prime Ministers of St Kitts and St Lucia, who are also top officials of the Monetary Council, werewell thought out and executedreassurances that all would be well in Anguilla.
The cloud of dust and disbelief hardly settled over Anguilla, following the takeover of the banks, when the news of the resignation of Rev Dr H Clifton Niles from the Board of Directors of ANGLEC, and the serious revelations he made, came to light this week. This is obviously another disconcerting development which can result in some investigations into matters of operations and procedure, and the performance ability of the Board. And it could give rise serious questions by concerned shareholders.
Rev Niles’ letter of resignation, published elsewhere in this edition of The Anguillian, has been widely disseminated – but not necessarily by him. It is understood that copies have been sent to the ECCB and to the Caribbean Development Bank, the latter institution being of much financial support to ANGLEC through loans for generating equipment and other important services. Just what will be the result of this latest development is anybody’s guess. Rev. Niles’ resignation and revelations, and his assertion that he has more “hair-raising” matters he could reveal, could not have come at a more critical time when two of our national institutions have been taken over.
We end as we began by stating that there is a need for us to be proud of our various institutions and tosafeguard them in a manner befitting of what it means to be Anguillian.
